Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month concluded Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, we begin Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma and the Buddha’s prediction for those who rejoice, even on a moment’s thought, at hearing even a gāthā or a phrase of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Thereupon the World-Honored One said to Medicine-King Bodhisattva in the presence of the eighty thousand great men:

“Medicine-King! Do you see the innumerable gods, dragon­kings, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kiṃnaras, mahoragas, men, and nonhuman beings, and [the four kinds of devotees:] bhikṣus, bhikṣunīs, upāsakās, and upāsikās, and those who are seeking Śrāvakahood or Pratyekabuddhahood or the enlightenment of the Buddha in this great multitude? If in my presence any of them rejoices, even on a moment’s thought, at hearing even a gāthā or a phrase of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, I will assure him of his future Buddhahood, saying to him, ‘You will be able to attain Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi.’ ”

The Buddha said to Medicine-King:

“If after my extinction anyone rejoices, even on a moment’s thought, at hearing even a gāthā or a phrase of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, I also will assure him of his future attainment of Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. If anyone keeps, reads, recites, expounds and copies even a gāthā of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, and respects a copy of this sūtra just as he respects me, and offers flowers, incense, necklaces, incense powder, incense applicable to the skin, incense to burn, canopies, banners, streamers, garments and music to it, or just joins his hands together respectfully towards it, Medicine-King, know this, he should be considered to have appeared in the world of men out of his compassion towards all living beings, although he already made offerings to ten billion Buddhas and fulfilled his great vow under those Buddhas in a previous existence.

See A Single Thought Becomes the Seed

Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month repeated the prediction for Rāhula in gāthās, we hear the prediction for the two thousand Śrāvakas and conclude Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn.

Thereupon the World-Honored One saw the two thousand Śrāvakas, of whom some had something more to learn while others had nothing more to learn. They were gentle, quiet and pure. They looked up at the Buddha with all their hearts.

The Buddha said to Ānanda, “Do you see these two thousand Śrāvakas, of whom some have something more to learn while others have nothing more to learn?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Ānanda! These people will make offerings to as many Buddhas, as many Tathāgatas, as the particles of dust of fifty worlds. They will respect those Buddhas, honor them, and protect the store of their teachings. They will finally go to the worlds of the ten quarters and become Buddhas at the same time. They will be equally called Treasure-Form, the Tathāgata, the Deserver of Offerings, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the Man of Wisdom and Practice, the Well-Gone, the Knower of the World, the Unsurpassed Man, the Controller of Men, the Teacher of Gods and Men, the Buddha, the World-Honored One. They will live for a kalpa. They will be the same in regard to the adornments of their worlds, the number of the Śrāvakas and Bodhisattvas of their worlds, the duration of the preservation of their right teachings, and the duration of the preservation of the counterfeit of their right teachings.”

Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās:

I assure the future Buddhahood
Of these two thousand Śrāvakas
Who are now present before me.
They will become Buddhas in their future lives.

They will make offerings to as many Buddhas
As the particles of dust as previously stated.
They will protect the store of the teachings of those Buddhas,
And attain perfect enlightenment.

They will go to the worlds of the ten quarters.
Their [Buddha-]names will be the same.
They will sit at the place of enlightenment
And obtain unsurpassed wisdom at the same time.

Their [Buddha-]names will be Treasure-Form.
[The adornment of] their worlds, [the number of] their disciples,
[The duration of the period of] their right teachings,
[And that of] the counterfeit of them will be the same.

By their supernatural powers, they will save
The living beings of the worlds of the ten quarters.
Their fame will extend far and wide.
They will enter into Nirvana in the course of time.

Thereupon the two thousand Śrāvakas, of whom some had something more to learn while others had nothing more to learn, having heard the Buddha assure them of their future Buddhahood, danced with joy, and sang in a gāthā:

You, the World-Honored One, are the light of wisdom.
Hearing from you
That we are assured of our future Buddhahood,
We are as joyful as if we were sprinkled with nectar.

See General Vows and Special Vows

Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month heard the Buddha’s prediction for Rāhula, we repeat the prediction for Rāhula in gāthās.

Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās:

When I was a crown prince,
Rāhula was my eldest son.
When I attained the enlightenment of the Buddha,
He received the Dharma, and became the son of the Dharma.

In his future life he will see
Many hundreds of millions of Buddhas,
Become the eldest son of those Buddhas, and seek
The enlightenment of the Buddha with all his heart.

Only I know his secret practices.
He shows himself
To all living beings
In the form of my eldest son.

He has many thousands of billions of merits.
His merits are countless.
He dwells peacefully in the Dharma of the Buddha,
And seeks unsurpassed enlightenment.

See Universal Buddhahood

Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month heard Ānanda’s reaction to the prediction of his future buddhahood, we hear the Buddha’s prediction for Rāhula:

Thereupon the Buddha said to Rāhula:

“In your future life you will become a Buddha called Walking-On-Flowers-Of-SevenTreasures, the Tathāgata, the Deserver of Offerings, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the Man of Wisdom and Practice, the Well-Gone, the Knower of the World, the Unsurpassed Man, the Controller of Men, the Teacher of Gods and Men, the Buddha, the World-Honored One. [Before you become that Buddha,] you will make offerings to as many Buddhas, as many Tathāgatas, as the particles of dust of ten worlds. [Before you become that Buddha,] you will become the eldest son of those Buddhas just as you are now mine.

“The adornments of the world of Walking-On-Flowers-Of­Seven-Treasures Buddha, the number of the kalpas for which that Buddha will live, the number of his disciples, the duration of the preservation of his right teachings, and the duration of the preservation of the counterfeit of his right teachings will be the same as in the case of Mountain-Sea-Wisdom-Supernatural-Power­King Tathāgata.

“After you become the eldest son of the [Mountain-Sea-Wisdom-Supernatural-Power-King] Buddha, you will attain Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi [, and become Walking-On-Flowers-Of-Seven­Treasures Buddha].”

See The revelation of this universal ground

Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month considered the complaint of the eight thousand Bodhisattvas who had just resolved to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi, we hear Ānanda’s reaction to the prediction.

Having heard from the Buddha that he was assured of his future Buddhahood, and that his world would be adorned, Ānanda was able to fulfill his wish. He had the greatest joy that he had ever had. At that moment he recollected the store of the teachings of many thousands of billions of past Buddhas perfectly and without hindrance as if he had heard those teachings just now. He also recollected his original vow.

Thereupon Ānanda sang in gāthās:

You, the World-Honored One, are exceptional.
You reminded me of the teachings
Of innumerable Buddhas in the past
As if I had heard them today.

Having no doubts, I now dwell peacefully
In the enlightenment of the Buddha.
I will expediently become the attendant
Of future Buddhas, and protect their teachings.

See Ānanda and the Lotus Sūtra

Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma.

Day 14 Text with annotations

Having last month heard Śākyamuni’s prediction for Ānanda, we consider the complaint of the eight thousand Bodhisattvas who had just resolved to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi.

There were eight thousand Bodhisattvas who had just resolved to aspire [for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi] in this congregation. They thought, ‘As far as we have heard, even great Bodhisattvas have never been assured of their future Buddhahood. Why have these Śrāvakas been so assured?’

Thereupon the World-Honored One, seeing what the Bodhisattvas had in their minds, said to them:

“Good men! Ānanda and I resolved to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi under the Void-King Buddha at the same time [in our previous existence]. At that time Ānanda always wished to hear much while I always practiced strenuously. Therefore, I have already attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi[, but he has not yet]. Now he protects my teachings. He also will protect the store of the teachings of future Buddhas, teach Bodhisattvas, and cause them to attain [Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi], according to his original vow. Therefore, now he has been assured of his future Buddhahood.”

The Daily Dharma from Dec. 12, 2018, offers this:

Good men! Ānanda and I resolved to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi under the Void-King Buddha at the same time [in our previous existence]. At that time Ānanda always wished to hear much while I always practiced strenuously. Therefore, I have already attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi[, but he has not yet]. Now he protects my teachings.

The Buddha gives this description to those gathered to hear him teach in Chapter Nine of the Lotus Sūtra. In the story, he has just assured his cousin Ānanda that he will become a Buddha. He then explains the difference between hearing what the Buddha teaches and making it a part of our lives. It is when we practice the Buddha Dharma that we truly understand it. But even if we believe we do not have the capacity to practice, it is still important for us to hear and protect what the Buddha left for us. By giving others the opportunity to learn and do what perhaps we cannot, we help to improve their lives, and give them a chance to improve ours.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com